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Mauseria
|- | align=center colspan=2 | The Commonwealth of Mauseria | |- |'Capital City' || Arusha |- |'National Motto' || "Unity, Freedom, Socialism" |- |'Formation' | 26 April 1964 |- |'Government' • Chancellor • President | Socialist Parliamentary republic Shane Madonna Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete |- |'Currency' | 1 Volksmark ($) = 100 Pfennig |- |'Time zone' | EAT (UTC+3) |- |'Internet TLD' | .mau |- |'Calling Code' | +255 |- |} ---- Mauseria, officially the Commonwealth of Mauseria or Mauserian Volkstaat, is a country in East Africa that is bordered by Sudan, Ethiopia and Puntland on the north, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the west, and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique on the south. To the east it borders the Indian Ocean. The country’s name comes from the K98 Mauser rifle, an important symbol in Mauseria’s struggle for freedom. In 2008 government offices were transferred from Vereinigungsstadt (formerly Bagamoyo) to Arusha, making Arusha the country's political capital. History Mauseria as it exists today consists of the union of what was once Tanganyika, Kenya, Uganda, parts of Somalia and the islands of Zanzibar. Formerly a German colony from the 1880s through 1919, the post-World War 1 accords and the League of Nations charter designated the area a British Mandate (except for a small area in the northwest, which was ceded to Belgium and briefly became Rwanda and Burundi). Following the war German colonists and their native allies rebelled against British rule in Tanganyika. A chance discovery of a large, hidden Imperial German munitions dump and small arms cashe in Bagamoyo by the rebels and their quick distribution of said supplies to the general population contributed to a drawn out guerrilla war between the rebels, now calling themselves 'Mauserians' after the rifles which aided their fight, and British forces that lasted until Tanganyika's independence in 1961. At the forefront of the Tanganyikan independence movement was Julius Nyerere, a former schoolteacher and intellectual who entered politics in the early 1950s. In 1953 he was elected president of Tanganyika African Association (TAA), a civic organization supported by the rebels, that he had helped found while a student at Makerere University. In 1954 he transformed TAA into the politically oriented Tanganyika African National Union (TANU). TANU's main objective was to achieve national sovereignty for Tanganyika. A campaign to register new members was launched, and within a year TANU had become the leading legal political organization in the country. Despite the British belief that TANU was a mere front for the Mauserian movement, Nyerere became Minister of British-administered Tanganyika in 1960 and continued as Prime Minister when Tanganyika became officially independent in 1961. Soon after independence TANU granted full amnesty to the Mauserian rebels, ending the guerrilla war in Tanganyika. Nyerere's first presidency took a turn to the Left after the Arusha Declaration, which codified a commitment to Pan-African Socialism, social solidarity, collective sacrifice and "ujamaa" (familyhood). After the Declaration, banks were nationalized as were many large industries. After the leftist Zanzibar Revolution overthrowing the Sultan in neighboring Zanzibar, the Mau Mau rebellion forcing the British out of Kenya and a TANU-backed coup in neighboring Uganda the hitherto separate regions merged with Tanganyika to form the Mauserian Commonwealth on 26 April 1964. The union of the four regions was controversial among many East Africans (even those sympathetic to the revolution) but was accepted by both the Nyerere government and the Revolutionary Governments of Kenya, Uganda and Zanzibar owing to shared political values and goals. In the late 1960's the independent nations of Rwanda and Burundi joined the Mauserian Commonwealth following the overthrow of their fledgling governments by Mauserian backed rebel forces. After the fall of commodity prices and the sharp spike of oil prices in the late 1970s, Mauseria's economy took a turn for the worse. The 1980s saw the country in disarray as economic turmoil shook the commitments to social justice and it began to appear as if Mauseria was a lost cause. This peaked in 1984 when Kenya and Uganda declared themselves Independent from Mauseria. A brief war that followed saw the nation reunified, but continued unrest peaked in a military coup in early 1985. Elections were suspended, ushering in an era of coups and counter-coups, which would last until the early-1990s. In 1990 a civil war erupted in neighboring Somalia which spilled over into the unstable Mauserian Commonwealth. By 1991 a relatively stable military junta held power in Mauseria and the Commonwealth was able to take control of the situation along the Somali border. By mid-1992 increasing violence and instability in Somalia caused the Mauserian Junta to order a military intervention in Somalia. The Mauserian Commonwealth occupied Somalia soon after. In June 1996, Somali warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid was captured and executed by Mauserian forces in Mogadishu. The Mauserian Junta chose to remain in Somalia, however, and declared Somalia part of the Mauserian Commonwealth in September 1996. The UN condemned the annexation of Somalia and the United Nations Operation in Somalia III (UNOSOM III) was launched in December 1996. The Mauserian junta attacked Pakistan Army troops, attached to UNOSOM III, in Mogadishu inflicting over 80 casualties. Fighting escalated until 18 American troops and more than 1,000 Mauserians and Somalis were killed in a raid in Mogadishu during October 1997. The UN withdrew Operation United Shield on 3 March 1998, having suffered significant casualties, and with the Mauserian Junta remaining in control of Somalia. The Somali conflict had stretched the junta's control thin however, and on 27 August 1999 the junta was overthrown by a popular revolution lead by the Mauserian Communist Party. The new government declared the establishment of the Mauserian Volkstaat (People's State), reissued the Arusha Declaration and held a popular vote in Somalia, letting the Somali people choose to remain part of Mauseria or become independent again. The result left Southwestern Somalia under Mauserian control while the newly independent nations of Puntland and Somaliland declared themselves allies of the new Mauserian Volkstaat. Following the establishment of the Mauserian Volkstaat and founding of a new Parliament (the Volkskammer, or "People's Chamber") the first free elections in Mauseria for almost two decades occurred in December 1999. Chancellor Shane Madonna was sworn in in January 2000. Today, Mauseria's prospects for development look increasingly promising, as its natural resources provide an excellent foundation for future investment and economic growth. Politics Every four years, after national elections and the convocation of the newly elected members of the Volkskammer, the chancellor is elected by a majority of the 535 members of the Volkskammer upon the proposal of the President (Volkspräsident). This vote is one of the few cases where a majority of all elected members of the Volkskammer must be achieved, as opposed to a mere majority of those that are currently assembled. This is referred to as the Kanzlermehrheit (chancellor's majority), and is designed to ensure the establishment of a stable government. It has in the past occasionally forced ill or pregnant members to have to attend parliament when a party's majority was only slim. Unlike regular voting by the Volkskammer, the vote to elect the chancellor is by secret ballot. This is intended to ensure that the chancellor's majority does not depend on members of his party only outwardly showing support. If the nominee of the President is not elected, the Volkskammer may elect its own nominee within fourteen days. If no-one is elected within this period, the Volkskammer will attempt an election. If the person with the highest number of votes has a majority, the President must appoint him or her. If the person with the highest number of votes does not have a majority, the President may either appoint them or call new elections for the Volkskammer. As the only chancellor has been elected in the first vote as yet neither of these constitutional provisions has been applied. The chancellor is the only member of the government elected by the Volkskammer. The other cabinet ministers are chosen by the chancellor himself or herself, although they are formally appointed by the President on the chancellor's proposal. Economy The economy is centrally planned with private industry existing, but heavily regulated. The nation has many natural resources including gold, oil and natural gas. Recent headway has been made in the extraction of natural gas has taken place recently in this decade as gas is drawn to the coast and exported to various markets overseas. Private industry is mainly limited to the service industry and light consumer goods. Mauseria has vast amounts of natural resources including gold deposits and diamonds. Mauseria is also known for the Tanzanite gemstones. Mauseria has dozens of beautiful national parks like the world famous Serengeti and the Masai Mara, that generate income with a large tourism sector that plays an important part in the economy. Growth from 2000 to 2005 featured a pickup in industrial production and a substantial increase in output of minerals, led by gold. Commercial production of natural gas from the Songo Songo island in the Indian Ocean off the Rufiji Delta commenced 2004, with natural gas being pumped in a pipeline to the mainland, with the bulk of it being converted to electricity by the state utility firm. A new gas field is being brought on stream in Mnazi Bay. A growing military and technological industry is being funded by the government, however the longterm results of this remain to be seen. Prolonged drought during the early years of the 21st century has reduced electricity generation capacity (some 30% of Mauseria's electricity supplies are generated by hydro-electric schemes). During 2006 Mauseria suffered a series of "load-shedding" or power rationing because of the shortfall of generated power, largely because of insufficient hydro-electric generation. Plans to increase nuclear generation capacity are likely to take some years to implement, and growth is forecast to be increased to seven per cent per year, and perhaps eight or more. Demographics & Languages Since 1919 the face of East Africa has changed dramatically. The Mauserian revolution, made up of both Europieans and African natives, attracted various marxists, anarchists, radicals and anticolonialists from across the world. The Mauserian population consists of more than 200 ethnic groups with the majority the past centuries immigrants remaining in and around the nations major cities. The majority of native Mauserians, including such large ethnic groups as the Sukuma and the Nyamwezi, have Bantu origins. Groups of Nilotic or related origin include the nomadic Masai and the Luo. Thanks to the efforts of the Mauserian Commonwealth over the past several decades most communities now speak one of the nations official languages; English, German, Swahili, Somali or Arabic. Current statistics on religion in Mauseria are unavailable because religious surveys were eliminated from government census reports after 1967 upon the governments adoption of Athiesm. Religious leaders and sociologists estimate that the Christian and Muslim communities are equal, each accounting for 30 to 40 percent of the population, with the remainder consisting of practitioners of other faiths, indigenous religions, and atheists. The HIV rate in Mauseria was 6.5% among adults aged 15-49 as of 2006.